cuff

¹

[ kuhf ]

noun

1. a fold or band serving as a trimming or finish for the bottom of a sleeve.
2. a turned-up fold, as at the bottom of a trouser leg.
3. the part of a gauntlet or long glove that extends over the wrist.
4. a separate or detachable band or piece of fabric worn about the wrist, inside or outside of the sleeve.
5. an elasticized, ribbed, or reinforced band at the top of a sock or stocking.
6. a band of leather or other material, wider than a collar, sewed around the outside of the top of a shoe or boot to serve as a trimming or finish.
7. a handcuff:

   I accessorized my costume with cuffs, a badge, and a toy gun.

8. Anatomy. rotator cuff ( def ).
9. Furniture. a horizontal strip of veneer used as an ornament on a leg.
10. Medicine/Medical. an inflatable wrap placed around the upper arm and used in conjunction with a device for recording blood pressure.

verb (used with object)

1. to make a cuff or cuffs on:

   to cuff a pair of trousers.

2. to put handcuffs on:

   The officer was quick to cuff the suspect and read him his rights.

3. Slang. to start an exclusive relationship with:

   You’ve gotta cuff her if you want to keep her.

cuff

²

[ kuhf ]

verb (used with object)

1. to strike with the open hand; beat; buffet.

noun

1. a blow with the fist or the open hand; buffet.

cuff

¹

/ kʌf /

noun

1. the part of a sleeve nearest the hand, sometimes turned back and decorative
2. the part of a gauntlet or glove that extends past the wrist
3. the turned-up fold at the bottom of some trouser legs Also called (in eg Britain)turn-up
4. off the cuff informal.
   off the cuff improvised; extemporary

cuff

²

/ kʌf /

verb

1. tr to strike with an open hand

noun

1. a blow of this kind

Word History and Origins

Origin of cuff¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English cuffe “mitten”; perhaps akin to Old English cuffie “cap,” from Medieval Latin cuphia; coif ²

Origin of cuff²

First recorded in 1520–30; origin uncertain; perhaps from a Scandinavian language; compare Norwegian, Swedish dialect kuffa “to push, shove”; also German cant kuffen “to thrash”

Word History and Origins

Origin of cuff¹

C14 cuffe glove, of obscure origin

Origin of cuff²

C16: of obscure origin

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. off the cuff, Informal.
   1. extemporaneously; on the spur of the moment:

      She made those comments off the cuff, and they came back to haunt her later.

   2. unofficially or informally:

      I'm telling you this strictly off the cuff.

2. on the cuff, Slang.
   1. with the promise of future payment; on credit.
   2. without charge; with no payment expected:

      He enjoyed his meal the more because it was on the cuff.

More idioms and phrases containing cuff

see off the cuff ; on the cuff .

Example Sentences

Mittens with zippers will also be easier to put on and take off, and extra-long cuffs that fit under the jacket will help them stay in place.

From Popular-Science

The company also makes a skiing version with a waxed canvas cuff you can cinch.

From Outside Online

For skiing, the cuff of the glove should cover your entire wrist.

From Popular-Science

You can make it long if you want your mittens to cover a part of your forearm, or you can make it short if you just want a simple cuff.

From Popular-Science

The cuff is adjustable to manage your exposure depending on the weather and it’s thin enough to fit underneath a helmet.

From Popular-Science

And, again, I now confess, I had an occasional Bourbon and stoogie on the cuff.

From The Daily Beast

They create those blouses a lot of times, where they will add a bow or take fabric from another shirt to create the cuff.

From The Daily Beast

Walters took the opportunity to lob some off-the-cuff softball questions.

From The Daily Beast

Of course, Coakley spoke off the cuff and had no one else to blame.

From The Daily Beast

If I could do that off the cuff I would be WAAY more fun at parties!

From The Daily Beast

But Bruno was unwilling to release his victim, and it took a hard cuff and a sharp command to make him let go.

From Project Gutenberg

The cuff removed from his right wrist, Black Hood went to a chair beside the desk and calmly sat down.

From Project Gutenberg

The president, the vice-presidents, and the stewards were to have three buttons on a slash cuff, and to wear blue pantaloons.

From Project Gutenberg

Undress: Short blue jacket with round collar, single-breasted—six buttons in front, and three on each cuff.

From Project Gutenberg

With palpable reluctance Stanton drew a gray envelope out of the cuff of his wrapper.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• belt
• sock

About This Word

What else does cuff mean?

Cuff can refer to the ends of sleeves or rolled pants, handcuffs, or, in the world of modern love, the act of going steady with someone over the winter months.

Where does cuff come from?

A cuff, which originally referred to a mitten or glove, is the end of your shirt sleeve. Garments that are rolled up on the ends are also said to be cuffed.

The expression off-the-cuff emerged in the 1930s for speaking without having anything prepared beforehand (i.e., notes written on the cuffs of one’s sleeve, which was apparently a thing).

Cuffs has also been short for handcuffs since the 19th century and later lent itself to slang. In the 2010s, dating culture began to refer to getting cuffed and cuffing season. This is when someone shacks up with someone else during the fall and winter months—when no one wants to be alone over the holidays and wants to cuddle up with an S.O. in the cold. The metaphor is of handcuffing oneself to a partner (being exclusive) during these times as opposed to single in spring and summer. The term was popularized by rapper Fabolous’s 2013 song “Cuffin Season.”

How is cuff used in real life?

Cuff, of course, widely refers to the ends of sleeves or other parts of clothing (e.g., cuffed jeans). Off the cuff, for improvised or candid speaking, often appears in the expression off-the-cuff remarks or comments. Such words are often seen as trouble-making or hurtful due to their in-the-moment nature.

When talking about a relationship, you can use cuff in verb forms (to cuff someone or get cuffed) and in noun forms (cuffing season). Cuffing season is a popular topic in lifestyle publications each year when the leaves start changing color.

More examples of cuff:

“Spring is officially here, which means you can finally come out of hibernation and venture back out into the world. The question is, now that you can leave the house again, do you still need the person you cuffed up with during winter to ride (literally) out the spring with? After all, it’s tradition to un-cuff as soon as the weather permits, so there’s a good chance that when you first got together in chillier times, it was just a seasonal love affair.”
—Rachel Shatto, Elite Daily, March, 2018

Note

This content is not meant to be a formal definition of this term. Rather, it is an informal summary that seeks to provide supplemental information and context important to know or keep in mind about the term’s history, meaning, and usage.